Paper dispensing cabinet



Jan. 29, 1935. H, L. SAMSON 1,989,381

PAPER DI SPENS ING CABINET Filed March 7, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet l L /0 A TTORN YS.

l s l il 's l Jan. 29, 1935. H L, SAMSON 1,989,381

PAPER DISPENS ING CABINET Filed March 7, 1934 2 She@isn-Shelf(l 2 IVENTOR.

ATToR EVS.'

Patented .16.11.29, 1935 n UNITED-srAr-es PATENT orifice Henry L. Samson, `New York, ;N. Y.,`assignor to National Paper Products Company, San Francisco, Calif., a. corporation of California l Application March Y7,1934, Serial No. '714,463 t 3 claims. (cil. 31a- 62) This invention relates to a cabinet for' containing and dispensing paper towels, toilet tissue, paper -napkins, and the like.

Several types ofcabinets for containingv and dispensing paper towels, andlike articles, are in common use. Such cabinets are usually provided'with .a narrow dispensing slot which is located in the bottom of the cabinet. Due to the position and the narrowness of the slot, sev=` eral diiculties are encountered.' For example in such 'containers the towels and other articles to be dispensed are stacked one on top ofthe otherover the slot, thereby causing the entire' weight of the stack to be imposed on the bottommost towel, thus producing' excessive friction with consequent tearing of the towels, particu-A larly when withdrawn by wet hands. Again, when a large quantity, say one hundred and fifty towels, or more, are placed in such acabinet, the Vweight upon the discharge slot is such that unless rollers are inserted in the bottom of the cabinet much waste results. Again, when the thread of the interleaving between the towels is lost, it is difficult .or 'impossible .tofeed the next towel through the slot unless'` a pencilfor knife, or similar contrivance, is used to pull the towel through the slot.

The object of the present invention is generally to improve and simplify the construction and operation of dispensing "cabinets by which the above objections are overcome; and particularly to provide a cabinet in which the'- towels are adapted to be supported either on their edges or on their ends so as to reduce friction due to weight to a minimum; to providea cabinet which employs va comparatively wide dispensing slot at the front rather than in thev bottom of the cabinet so as to permit ready withdrawal of the towels even though the interleavingthread should be lost; to provide a cabinet whichpermits the use of a single or multiple compartments so that two users can withdraw towels simultaneously; to provide a cabinet which may be positioned with the dispensing slot either in a vertical or horizontal position; to provide an automatic follower plater whereby towels are moved forward and kept in position against the front dispensing slot, said follower plate being operable when the cabinet is placed in a horizontal or vertical position; and further, to provide a cabinet which is adapted to receive and dispense paper towels and like articles of single or a multiple fold form, whether they be interleaved or not.

The paper dispensing cabinet is shown by way of illustrationin the accompanying drawings, in

which- Fig. 1 is a perspective View of the paper dispensing cabinet showing the lower cover member in operi' p Jsition.V j v Fig. 2 is a central vertical cross section of Fig.1. .f Fig. 3 is a horizontal section `takerilfon line Ill-III of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a perspectiveview of the same cabinet shown in Figs. 1 to 3,`the only difference being that the cabinet is placed with the dispensing slot ina vertical position. f l

' Fig. 5 is a vertical cross' section taken yon line V-V'of Fig'.4`.v y I y Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic'view showing a single fold interleaved paper towel.

Figs. .'7 and 8 are diagrammatic views'sh'owing multiple folded towels andlike paperv articles'. `A f Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly'Figs. 1 to 3, A indicates the back panel of the cabinet, 2 2 the sides,'andg3' and 4 the top and bottom sections, respectively. The rsides of the cabinet are cut angularly, as indicated by the lines 5 5, making each lside widest at .its central portion and narrower at each end.

This isfan advantage as it produces greater 4vaccessibility when refilling the cabinet as will hereinafter be described.

The cabinetfis divided into two compartments 6 `and 'l by a centrally disposed shelf 8.Y This shelf'lis as wide as the Vvwidest portion of the sides andfashelf- 9 of similar width is suppcrted on the bottom member 4 and is suitably secured thereto. r,The two shelves forming the bottom portions ofthe respective cabinets also form `supports for ther'paper articles, such as towels, etc.; placed `in the compartments. Each compartment is normally` closed by a coverand -thecov ers areindicated at 10 and 1-1. "fThecov'e'rS are' hingedlysecured to the top and bottom4v sections, as indicated at la and 11a, and each covermay be provided with a key actuated lock 12' to prevent tampering by unauthorized individuals. The side portions of the respectivecovers are angularly cut to conform to the cut portions of the sides of the cabinet, andwhen the covers assume closed position, their front faces will be parallel to the back panel so as to give the cabinet a uniform thickness throughout. The paper placed in the respective compartments, whether it be towels, napkins, or otherwise, is dispensed or removed through slots 14 and 14a formed in the respective cover sections. These slots extend from end to end of the cabinet and are 4so 

